Topic outline

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    Prime Minister Dilemma

    Mei Ling CHOW, Yule Brook College, Maddington, Western Australia, AUSTRALIA


  • Topic 1

    The year is 2050. You are the Australian Prime Minister in a time when Australia and the international community are faced with increasing social antagonism and disparities in wealth. With a limited budget, will you improve the livelihood of millions of Australians or alleviate the suffering of the world's billions?

  • Topic 2

    What is It About?

    This dilemma is set in Australia. The year is 2050 and the Australian Prime Minister has been given a $500 million dollar budget to invest in one of two projects designed to improve human living conditions in a rapidly deteriorating environment.

    The students are encouraged to put themselves in the position of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister must invest the money either

    (i) to further the needs of a small proportion of the population through space exploration (thereby improving Australian livelihoods) or

    (ii) to provide aid to underdeveloped societies and in doing so address issues of global poverty, and disease.

    The activity aims to provoke a greater understanding of social justice and social and environmental sustainability by encouraging students to consider the long-term and short-term implications in conjunction with decision-making.

  • Topic 3

    Where to Use It?

    This dilemma was designed to be used in a Science class teaching year 9 students (14 years old).

  • Topic 4

    The Dilemma Story

  • Topic 5

    Teaching Resources